Planning ahead

The Cleveland Zoological Society held its ZippityZooDoo fundraiser June 5 at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. The nonprofit, like many of its counterparts, scaled back some event costs to maximize its profit margin.

The Cleveland Zoological Society expected to raise a little less money at one of its major fundraising events this year, but the nonprofit group didn't allow its feathers to get ruffled.
It instead decreased its costs to host the event in an effort to widen its profit margin, said Tara Turner, director of external relations for the Cleveland Zoological Society. The nonprofit was trying to keep costs for ZippityZooDoo on June 5 down from previous years by enacting such measures as buying less costly gifts for attendees and not renting extra portable toilets, she said.
In the end, the society raised $218,000 from the event this year, down 15% from the $255,000 raised last year, she said. Despite the decrease in donations, the society held costs for the event to 50 cents per dollar raised.
Such approaches are becoming more popular as nonprofits look to maintain their fundraising levels in a deep recession that has companies and individuals reducing their spending, said Lauren Steiner, who owns Grants Plus, a fundraising consulting agency in Bay Village, and who also is on the board of the Cleveland chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
“Everyone is concerned. They're looking for a similar performance” as seen in previous years of fundraising, she said.

No child's play

Providence House, a crisis nursery in Ohio City, had its annual fundraising luncheon April 28. Instead of serving the typical salad and hot chicken dish with vegetables, the organization saved about $7,000 by serving macaroni and cheese, fruit and a piece of chocolate cake with M&Ms on top, said Natalie Leek-Nelson, CEO and president of Providence House.
To complete the meal — created in the spirit of the children served by the organization — attendees were encouraged to take home prepared portions of vegetables as an “afternoon snack,” she said.
Usually, a board member will ask attendees to give money at the event, but this year the nursery had children share stories and ask attendees to give at least $20 each, Ms. Leek-Nelson said. The nursery raised $12,000 that day, much more than in previous years, she said.
Though corporate sponsorship was down and the number of attendees was about 100 fewer than the nearly 700 who attended last year, she said the nursery raised about $50,000 at the luncheon, up from about $35,000 last year. And people raved about the new format, even requesting the nursery serve grilled cheese and tomato soup at next year's luncheon, she said.
“We're focusing on getting much more creative and unique,” Ms. Leek-Nelson said.
Recovery Resources is taking a more targeted approach to fundraising, said Debora Rodriguez, president and CEO of the organization, which provides programs for the mentally ill and those with drug, alcohol and other addictions.
She said some corporations are refusing to sponsor events altogether because of financial difficulties.
“They're saying, "Don't hit me up for money for a golf outing, a race or a walk,'” she said. “They're receiving these (stimulus) dollars and cannot be seen funding events.”
As a result, she said Recovery Resources is approaching only those with whom it has a more established relationship when asking for donations for an event.
Though it is proving to be a successful tactic so far this year, Ms. Rodriguez said she knows “not everybody will be able to fund us at the level they're used to,” so Recovery Resources is looking for ways to trim its overall overhead costs, such as by sending invitations and annual reports by e-mail.

'Very tough out there'

Others organizations, meanwhile, are forging ahead. United Way will hold its annual golf tournament on a yet-to-be determined date in September and the event will not be scaled back, said Jenna Snyder, a United Way spokeswoman.
Participation and donations linked to that event remain to be seen, but United Way already has had a tough fundraising year. At its March 6 annual meeting, the nonprofit announced it fell $2 million short of its $42.5 million goal for the fiscal year that ended that day. The meeting's attendance this year also dropped by 155 people, down to 1,135 from 1,290 in 2008, she said.
Barbara Rosenthal, vice president of resource development at North Coast Community Homes, is keeping her fingers crossed that attendance will pick up at that organization's two upcoming fundraising events. North Coast develops community-based homes for people with mental retardation, mental illness or developmental disabilities.
As of late May, only 93 golfers had signed up for North Coast's July 20 golf outing and the number of corporate sponsors was down to 25 from 34 last year, which has the nonprofit expecting to net only about $60,000 in fundraising, she said. The event typically attracts about 140 golfers and raises about $110,000, she said.
“I'm still working and hoping to fill it out,” Ms. Rosenthal said.
It's also slow going for North Coast's Sept. 12 gala, she said. Some sponsors have decreased the amount they will give to the event, which was held for the first time in 2007, she said. As of late May, North Coast had raised about $100,000 in sponsorships, or about 25% of its $400,000 goal, she said.
“It's very tough out there,” Ms. Rosenthal said. “Just about everything we do (with regard to fundraising) is netting down.”

Showstoppers

Some nonprofits are choosing to cancel their events altogether, said Mary Ogden, a principal with the Ogden Post Consulting Group LLC in Medina.
“We're seeing some organizations cancel their golf tournaments, or anything that depends on corporate sponsorship,” she said.
But that's a tricky compromise, Ms. Ogden said. Nonprofits should be concerned that, if their event takes a one-year hiatus, people might forget about it or get used to not attending, she said.
While the recession is forcing short-term changes in how nonprofits raise money, it also is sure to forge long-term changes, she said.
“(Nonprofits are) looking at revenue streams and seeing which ones are more stable than others and what's going to change as a result of this (recession),” she said.